The automaker, Europe's largest, said in an e-mail sent to The Associated Press on Thursday that the vehicles affected were models built between November 2003 and January 2013.

The company says 589,000 Caddy vehicles may be fitted with a damaged pin that holds on the gas-pressure dampers that slow the closing of the rear hatch-type door. If the pin becomes detached, the company says the door can fall unexpectedly.

Volkswagen says the defect doesn't affect Caddy vehicles with folding rear doors that are fixed to the sides, and that vehicle owners affected will be informed.